Triumph Rosy-Finches & redpolls, 12/29/11

We're over in Hailey for the week and stopped by Triumph Thursday AM (~ 5 miles up the East Fork Rd. between Hailey and Ketchum). There was a nice mixed flock of Gray-crowned and Black Rosy-Finches at the feeders and trees just before Victor Dr. Typical for Rosy-Finches they were pretty skittish but I got some good looks at these gaudy birds (best look ever at Black Rosy-Finches). There were also a few Common Redpolls and others here as well. Would have spent more time in the area but we were on our way up Galena Lodge to play in the snow.

At Galena on the ski trails I had a nice mixed flock of Mountain Chickadees, Red-breasted Nuthatches, Brown Creeper, and Golden-crowned Kinglets and later a calling Clark's Nutracker. What a great area and the best snow locally w/ the high snow levels (although there is snow in Hailey this morning). We're heading back to Boise today and hope to stop at the TNC Silver Creek Preserve on the way.

Happy New Year!

Charles.

 

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, Idaho
46°43′54″ N, 116°59′50″ W
email: chaetura@gmail.com

Moscow-Pullman CBC, west Moscow Mountain, 12/17/11

Hi All - 

Tom Besser and I (and Lee Anne Eareckson for a while in the AM) covered the west side of Moscow Mountain for the Moscow-Pullman CBC today. What a great day! Tom and I hiked almost 8 miles round trip up to Paradise Pt. making a more or less straight shot from pond 9 to Paradise Pt. and returning via the road (shown as Foothill Rd. on maps but really a logging road down to Tolo Trail). There are lots of birds on Moscow Mountain in winter! Highlights were 3 Pine Grosbeaks, a Pileated Woodpecker, a N. Pygmy Owl, and lots of chickadees, nuthatches, creepers, and Pine Siskins. It will be interesting to compare some of these totals w/ previous year counts. The conditions were ideal this year with good weather and little snow and lots of birds.

thanks,

Charles.

Ruffed Grouse  1

Red-tailed Hawk  2

Great Horned Owl 1
Northern Pygmy-Owl  1
Hairy Woodpecker  1
Northern Flicker  2
Pileated Woodpecker  1
Common Raven 4
Black-capped Chickadee  7

Mountain Chickadee  27
Chestnut-backed Chickadee  67     - multiple large flocks some w/ as many as 15 birds
Red-breasted Nuthatch  39     - 3 or 4 w/ every feeding flock encountered

White-breasted Nuthatch  10   - with 6 different feeding flocks along route (usually in pairs)
Pygmy Nuthatch  5

Brown Creeper  9

Pacific Wren  1
Golden-crowned Kinglet  19

Townsend's Solitaire  1
American Robin  3
Bohemian Waxwing  10
Cedar Waxwing  30
Dark-eyed Junco  20

House Finch  1
Pine Grosbeak  3

Red Crossbill  12
Pine Siskin  270 - large flock (~200 or more birds) in clearcut northwest side of Paradise Pt., more in smaller flocks elsewhere)

26 species

start: 6:00 AM

stop 2:30 PM

hours owling - 1

miles owling - 1

(no owls in the AM!)

hours on foot: 7.5

miles on foot: 7.5

3 observers in 1 party

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, Idaho
46°43′54″ N, 116°59′50″ W
email: chaetura@gmail.com

Moscow yard birds - Blue Jay, Townsend's Solitaire, etc.

All -

I've had a Blue Jay (presumably the same one) in my greater neighborhood for about a month now but not often seen/heard. However, in the past week or so I've seen it 3 times around my house and today it has been present all day (in fact I'm watching it out my window now as I type). 

I also had a Townsend's Solitaire in the yard for a while this morning (also seen through the window I'm looking out now) which was nice. There is often one a couple blocks away in a small patch of junipers but not regularly in the yard. These were part of a nice collection of ~100 or so birds (see below) mostly right around my house present this morning (activity has declined noticeably in the past hour). I had a probable Common Redpoll fly over but couldn't get on it (I had a small flock of redpolls a block away Thanksgiving day).

thanks, Charles.

Northern Flicker (Red-shafted)  1
Blue Jay  1
Common Raven  1
Black-capped Chickadee  1
Mountain Chickadee  2
Red-breasted Nuthatch  2
Townsend's Solitaire  1
American Robin  10
European Starling  5
Cedar Waxwing  8
Dark-eyed Junco  25
House Finch  20
House Sparrow  20

This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org)

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, Idaho
46°43′54″ N, 116°59′50″ W
email: chaetura@gmail.com

Moscow area (10/7-10/9) birds on the move!

Howdy all - 

A good number of birds have been moving through Moscow since Friday. The large feeding flocks in the maples near my house have been primarily Ruby-crowned Kinglets (RCKI) and Yellow-rumped Warblers (YRWA) but there have also been Dark-eyed Juncos (30+ on 10/8), increasing numbers of American Robins especially overhead and a nice variety of other species mixed in. I've also had my first big flock of Pine Siskins in town this fall with a flock of 50+ here yesterday. Many of these seem to be on the move, for example I had a flock of ~20 RCKI and > 50 YRWA working the maples near my house this morning and within 20 minutes they had moved on. Also as I mentioned many birds are moving overhead especially Cedar Waxwings, American Robins, Pine Siskins, and some N. Flickers this morning that appeared to be in active migration. I really enjoy these October migration movements due to the sheer number of birds moving even though earlier in fall migration often produces more variety. Has anybody been to any of the migration traps over the weekend? Seems like they could have productive if this movement is across a broad area.

eBird list 10/8 -  http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S8920672

eBird list 10/9 - http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/email?subID=S8920696

species of interest (all around my neighborhood today and yesterday):

Hammond's Flycatcher - 10/8

Red-naped Sapsucker - 10/9

Cassin's Vireo - 10/8

Orange-crowned Warbler - 10/8 (4) & 10/9 (1)

Yellow-rumped Warbler - 50-70 each day

Townsend's Warbler - 2 this morning (10/9)

Dark-eyed Junco - up to 30

Pine Siskin - flock of 50+ yesterday and more scattered smaller groups

Red Crossbill - 1 on 10/8

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, Idaho
46°43′54″ N, 116°59′50″ W
email: chaetura@gmail.com
skype: charles.swift
google voice: 208-991-2473

twitter: chasimoto

Moscow area birds

Hi All - 

I just returned from a fun 10 day family vacation in the Estes Park Colorado area (gateway to Rocky Mountain National Park). I didn't do a lot of birding but when I did I saw some cool birds like White-tailed Ptarmagin, Black Swift, Three-toed Woodpecker, Green-tailed Towhee, Brown-capped Rosy-finch, and the ever present and hard to ignore Broad-tailed Hummingbirds. This is great area for a vacation with great birding options for anyone looking around for such a place.

Back home for a couple days now I did a regular morning survey around my neighborhood yesterday and had a Warbling Vireo, my first "fall" migrant/dispreser  of the season. There is also a locally breeding Western Flycatcher still calling nearby - a pair was nesting right outside my Estes Park Condo and sounded quite different from our local WEFLs. This morning I was able to check the UI Dairy ponds and although shorebird habitat is confined to their weedy margins this habitat is great for Solitary Sandpipers (6) and  a few others were present: 4 Killdeer, 8 Spotted Sandpipers, and a juv. Wilson's Phalarope.

thanks, Charles.

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, Idaho
46°43′54″ N, 116°59′50″ W
email: chaetura@gmail.com
skype: charles.swift
google voice: 208-991-2473

twitter: chasimoto

biking Lake Coeur d'Alene, Heyburn SP - Harrison (and back)

Iris and I biked the Trail of the Coeur d'Alenes yesterday (7/10/11) with friends going from Heyburn State Park to Harrision (for beach play) and back. There was a nice variety of birds along the trail that I tried to note although this was secondary to biking (and beach play). Most notable were a group of 5 Common Loons (2 adults and 3 immatures) across from Conkling Park, 8 White Pelicans at Heyburn State Park, and a Caspian Tern just on the north side of the bridge in Heyburn State Park (in Benewah Co.). Our friends continued past Harrison north along the trail to Medimont and at some point along here Tom Besser had another Caspian Tern (in Kootenai Co.).

Also along the trail were typical species for the area including at least 10 Double-crested Cormorants, Spotted Sandpipers, lots of swallows (4 species incl. Cliff Swallows nesting on bridge), Western Flycatchers, a few Red-eyed Vireos, Gray Catbirds, lots of Yellow Warblers, Song Sparrows, etc. There is a big log jam on the south side of the Heyburn bridge which had a nice group of Ring-billed and California Gulls. The Common Loon group was interesting and consisted of an adult and 3 immatures in close association and another adult at some distance from the group. I didn't have much time to study these birds but suspect that 2 immatures were 1 year olds (1st summer birds) and the other *may* have been a juvenile. The presence of adults and possibly a juvenile suggest the possibility of local breeding but more observation/research is needed (I may try to get up there again this week).

For anyone into biking (also good for walking) this is a great scenic ride to combine w/ some birding and other summer activities. Camping (and other lodging options) are available at Heyburn SP and further east on trail which extends 72 miles all the way northeast past Wallace into the Silver Valley. There are many segments of the trail that are accessible from various trailheads along the route and provide access o good birding opportunities. For more information: http://friendsofcdatrails.org/CdA_Trail/index.html

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, Idaho
46°43′54″ N, 116°59′50″ W
email: chaetura@gmail.com
skype: charles.swift
google voice: 208-991-2473

Moscow - Eastside birds, Jun 10, 2011 (& a few others)

I'm still getting a few apparent migrants here in my east Moscow residential neighborhood with Western Tanager and Lazuli Bunting this morning. Also "Western" Flycatchers finally showed up in my neighborhood in past few days (and on campus at Shattuck on Monday 6/6). I've noticed what I now presume is the same Hammond's Flycatcher in my area for a week now possibly advertising for a mate which is a first for me here. Also still at least 1 Ruby-crowned Kinglet singing nearby. My quick morning survey eBird list is below (which I do most mornings if possible).

Some other sightings of interest for the past week (which I've had limited time to post) include a Common Nighthawk roosting in my yard (way cool) on Sunday afternoon (6/5) and a 2 Common Poorwills on private property along the Snake R. south of Lewiston the evening of 6/4. I was still noting some migrant warblers through earlier this week and Monday (6/6) had a couple of Gray Catbirds in the UI Arboretum which are potential breeders at that location.

thanks, Charles.

---------- Forwarded message ----------

Moscow - Eastside (My Neighborhood), Latah, US-ID
Jun 10, 2011 7:20 AM - 7:35 AM
Protocol: Traveling
0.2 mile(s)
Comments:     Western Flycatchers finally here locally also a few lingering migrants (?). A Hammond's Flycatcher may be on territory.
14 species

California Quail  1
Downy Woodpecker  1
Hammond's Flycatcher  1
Cordilleran Flycatcher  1
American Crow  6     family group
Red-breasted Nuthatch  1
American Robin  6
European Starling  10
Cedar Waxwing  2
Western Tanager  1
Lazuli Bunting  1
House Finch  5
American Goldfinch  2
House Sparrow  8

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2 (http://ebird.org)

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, Idaho
46°43′54″ N, 116°59′50″ W
email: chaetura@gmail.com
skype: charles.swift
google voice: 208-991-2473

some late (and not late) Moscow migrants on June 1

I had an Orange-crowned Warbler and a female Townsend's Warbler in and around my yard last evening. The Townsend's doesn't seem that unusual but I was quite surprised to see an Orange-crowned wandering around my yard on June 1. Earlier in the morning I had a calling Hammond's Flycatcher (getting a bit late for a migrant I think) and a Wilson's Warbler which on the other hand is not unusual to be migrating into early June (possibly heading way up north to the muskeg of the Yukon or similar exotic locale). No hordes of Western Tanagers this year as in some previous cool wet late spring periods. 

A rainy walk late in the afternoon through the UI Arboreta produced little except for several Calliope Hummingbirds guarding their (presumed) territories from high perches and Golden-crowned Kinglets which seem to regularly nest in the older conifer-dominated Shattuck Arboretum. I was hoping for maybe an Olive-sided Flycatcher which would be expected this late in migration but no luck -perhaps in the next few days though. 

Nothing new (or even much at all) this morning but perhaps when this latest system clears out we will get some more late migrants.

thanks, Charles.

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, Idaho
46°43′54″ N, 116°59′50″ W
email: chaetura@gmail.com
skype: charles.swift
google voice: 208-991-2473

Moscow area birds week in review (5/23 - 5/28)

I've been checking my neighborhood most mornings this week for migrants, checked the UI Arboretum one day and noted birds around town and on campus. There has been a thin trickle of migrants during the week as summarized below. A few regular species are still missing locally such as Western Wood-Pewee and Western Flycatcher (both nest in town/campus) but typically are a bit later in town than elsewhere. I've also had no Western Tanagers this week and we typically get a late May push of this species - especially noticeable when we have cool, wet weather at the end of the month. Also of interest in town were a pair of Western Kingbirds at the UI Dairy  on 5/24 (although they usually nest just to the north near the UI Sheep Farm) and a Say's Phoebe at the medical campus above the old Moscow Wal-Mart (although they probably nest most years just to the south at the UI Cow barns). Finally I had a couple more Lesser Goldfinches along Paradise Creek on the southeast side of campus n 5/25.

Dusky Flycatcher - several

Hammond's Flycatcher - several

Warbling Vireo - most days (possibly some are local breeders)

Cassin's Vireo - 5/27

Yellow Warbler - most days, probably all local breeders

Townsend's Warbler - 5/24 UI Arb

Wilson's Warbler - only a couple

Lazuli Bunting - most days, 5 in neighborhood 5/28

Chipping Sparrow - most days, 30 UI Arb 5/24

Lesser Goldfinch - 5/25, 2 on southeast side of campus along Paradise Creek

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, Idaho
46°43′54″ N, 116°59′50″ W
email: chaetura@gmail.com
skype: charles.swift
google voice: 208-991-2473

early spring on the Palouse (birds, bugs, and herps)

I was able to get out this afternoon w/ Tom Besser for hikes at Phillips Farm County Park and at his property on the west end of Moscow Mountain. It was a typical spring day hereabouts - cloudy and cool at times but pleasant when the sun came out. Heading up US 95 north of Moscow I noticed the Loch 95 seasonal ponds was mostly cleared out of the ~250 ducks present yesterday. We had a nice hike at Phillip's (eBird list below) and in addition to birds noted swarming ladybugs, calling Pacific Chorus/Tree Frogs, and silent Columbia Spotted Frogs. Later at the Foothill Rd. lower pond we found a drake Cinnamon Teal, 4 Greater Yellowlegs, and 1 Lesser Yellowlegs among others. We noted and confirmed in Sibley the strong flank markings on the breeding plumage Greater Yellowlegs and lack of the same on the Lesser (in addition to bill differences and overall size this appears to be useful characteristic for separating breeding plumage yellowlegs). A nice variety of species were around Tom's place including a couple Ruffed Grouse flushed by his dog, an impressively close Cooper's Hawk rocketing through his feeders, and a "white belly" immature Bald Eagle heading south over Moscow Mountain.

Phillip's Farm eBird list

Canada Goose  2
Northern Harrier  3     appeared to migrating in a small group
Red-tailed Hawk  1
Red-naped Sapsucker  1     heard drumming
Northern Flicker  6
Common Raven  2
Black-capped Chickadee  4
Red-breasted Nuthatch  5
Ruby-crowned Kinglet  2
Western Bluebird  2
American Robin  25
European Starling  1
Spotted Towhee  2
Song Sparrow  2
Dark-eyed Junco  40
Red-winged Blackbird  2
Western Meadowlark  2
House Finch  5
Red Crossbill  2
Evening Grosbeak  25

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2 (http://ebird.org) 

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, Idaho
46°43′54″ N, 116°59′50″ W
email: chaetura@gmail.com
skype: charles.swift
google voice: 208-991-2473

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, Idaho
46°43′54″ N, 116°59′50″ W
email: chaetura@gmail.com
skype: charles.swift
google voice: 208-991-2473

Moscow area birds, 4/1 & 4/2 (feeder, neighborhood, and waterfowl)

Howdy All - 

Lots of fun birds (and fun weather!) in and around Moscow these first two days in April. The continuation of various finches in my yard and east side Moscow neighborhood - Cassin's Finches and Pine Siskins in particular and finally yesterday I've got some goldfinches showing up at my feeders and today a few Evening Grosbeaks (plenty of fly overs but few stopping at my on again off again feeders - at least while I'm home). Also lots of singing birds around the neighborhood including among others flickers, robins, starlings, juncos, cassin's & house finches and several Varied Thrushes again after a several week absence. Yesterday morning a pair of Mallards walked through my neighbor's yard which I don't see too often. Probably scouting out nest sites even though we're a good 4-6 blocks from Paradise Creek. Also Friday evening while it was still calm and mild I could hear Pacific Tree Frogs calling down along the creek from my house.

There are also a very nice variety of waterfowl (11 species of ducks plus C. Goose) close to town right now based on some quick checking mostly this morning - as follows below.

thanks, Charles.

UI Dairy (yesterday 4/1)

Mallard 6

Green-winged Teal 2

Northern Shoveler 4

Lesser Scaup 3

A. Coot 1

following all this morning (4/2)

UI Dairy

American Wigeon 2 (all of above apparently departed)

Mallard 8

Loch 95 (seasonal pond on east side of US 95 n. of Moscow near Estes Rd.) - 250-300 ducks including the largest group of pintail I've personally seen in the county, could have been a E. Wigeon in there somewhere but I couldn't find one (also viewing conditions are a bit challenging here)

American Wigeon 80

Mallard 20

Northern Shoveler 5

Northern Pintail 150

Green-winged Teal 4

Hooded Merganser 2 (pair)

Foothill Rd. ponds - only a few mallards but a Say's Phoebe was also present struggling against the wind to hawk insects over the pond outflow

Sora wetlands on Moscow Mountain Rd.: 

Gadwall 2

Mallard 16

Green-winged Teal 2

Syringa Ponds

Mallard 6

Ring-necked Duck 1

Bufflehead 4

Common Goldeneye 1

American coot 3

Tree Swallow 2

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, Idaho
(north-central Idaho, 80 miles SE of Spokane, WA)
46°43′54″ N, 116°59′50″ W
email: chaetura@gmail.com
skype: charles.swift
google voice: 208-991-2473

Moscow - UI Campus migrants, 3/31/11

Despite the gusty winds on the Palouse today there were a nice variety
of birds on campus during an afternoon walk (eBird list for UI
Arboretum below). It started out w/ a flock of ~75 Bohemian Waxwings
in the middle of campus which then flew over to the Arb (although
there might have been several flocks around). At the Arb were several
Ruby-crowned Kinglets associating w/ a small flock of Golden-crowned
Kinglets and BC Chickadees. As I was leaving the Arb a couple of
Violet-green Swallows zipped over heading south (interestingly).
Walking back through the Shattuck Arboretum I was alerted to the
presence of a Great Horned Owl by a noisy crow (which could be one of
a pair nesting somewhere in the Shattuck).

Charles.

Moscow - UI Arboretum and Botanical Gardens, Latah, US-ID
Mar 31, 2011 1:40 PM - 2:50 PM
Protocol: Traveling
1.0 mile(s)
Comments: Gusty winds but mild and nice variety of birds from
ponds up (the upper parts seem to have the best shelter).
20 species

Canada Goose 4 (on nest on lower pond)
Mallard 3
Great Blue Heron 1
Red-tailed Hawk 1
Killdeer 1
Rock Pigeon 6
Common Raven 1
Violet-green Swallow 2
Black-capped Chickadee 4
Golden-crowned Kinglet 6
Ruby-crowned Kinglet 2
American Robin 15
Varied Thrush 1
European Starling 1
Bohemian Waxwing 75
Song Sparrow 2
Dark-eyed Junco 5
House Finch 5
Pine Siskin 10
Evening Grosbeak X

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2 (http://ebird.org)

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, Idaho
(north-central Idaho, 80 miles SE of Spokane, WA)
46°43′54″ N, 116°59′50″ W
email: chaetura@gmail.com
skype: charles.swift
google voice: 208-991-2473

Pullman, WA Bewick's Wrens/Spotted Towhee - Lawson Gardens/Kruegal Park , 3/6/11

I had a few hours to kill in Pullman this afternoon and stumbled upon Lawson Gardens in the southeast part of Pullman. It was quite full of birds including a pair of Bewick's Wrens (male singing) and a female Spotted Towhee. The towhee may be an arrival but it also seems a reasonable place for an over-wintering bird. This seems like a good urban park for wintering birds and perhaps could be in migration as well. The eBird list below includes some birds from the surrounding neighborhood.

thanks, Charles.

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: <do-not-reply@ebird.org>
Date: Sun, Mar 6, 2011 at 10:23 PM

Location:     Lawson Gardens/Kruegal Park
Observation date:     3/6/11
Number of species:     19

California Quail     5
Rock Pigeon     1
Northern Flicker     5
Black-billed Magpie     20
American Crow     8
Black-capped Chickadee     1
Red-breasted Nuthatch     2
Bewick's Wren     2
Golden-crowned Kinglet     4
American Robin     10
European Starling     5
Spotted Towhee     1
Song Sparrow     3
Dark-eyed Junco     25
Cassin's Finch     1
House Finch     20
Pine Siskin     35
American Goldfinch     2
House Sparrow     30

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, Idaho
(north-central Idaho, 80 miles SE of Spokane, WA)
46°43′54″ N, 116°59′50″ W
email: chaetura@gmail.com
skype: charles.swift
google voice: 208-991-2473

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, Idaho
(north-central Idaho, 80 miles SE of Spokane, WA)
46°43′54″ N, 116°59′50″ W
email: chaetura@gmail.com
skype: charles.swift
google voice: 208-991-2473

Moscow area birds - in and a few out of town

There are quite a few birds in Moscow right now most notably it seems large numbers of Cassin's Finches. We had a flurry of activity in our yard Saturday AM and this morning which included a hard to count group of Cassin's (probably 15-20) which I think is a high count for our yard. Over President's Day weekend a report of  50 was submitted to the GBBC from a resident on the east side of Moscow which seems plausible given the numbers around (but one has to be careful of the possible confusion w/ House Finch in these cases).

This morning walking in to work I had more Cassin's Finches and several singing Varied Thrushes  (hard to tell how many due to difficulty in localizing this species by their song). There has also been a Varied Thrush on campus singing from a little bramble on the east end of the Life Sciences bldg. Also on my walk I had a Yellow-rumped Warbler in an east side neighborhood. There are still plenty of Evening Grosbeaks around including a few that came into our feeders on Saturday AM which we don't see very often despite them being regular fly overs. And some occasional small groups of fly over Red Crossbills. Also nice to hear all the singing Dark-eyed Juncos around town at this time of year.

On Saturday I had a couple of brief opportunities to check areas on the outskirts of town and had a couple of Killdeer, an adult Bald Eagle, and small dark goose w/ about 30 Canadas north of town that I thought was a good candidate for Cackling (Taverner's) Goose. There was also a couple of Killdeer near Paradise Creek on the southeast side of campus yesterday (Monday).

thanks, Charles.

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, Idaho
(north-central Idaho, 80 miles SE of Spokane, WA)
46°43′54″ N, 116°59′50″ W
email: chaetura@gmail.com
skype: charles.swift
google voice: 208-991-2473

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, Idaho
(north-central Idaho, 80 miles SE of Spokane, WA)
46°43′54″ N, 116°59′50″ W
email: chaetura@gmail.com
skype: charles.swift
google voice: 208-991-2473

silo geese and butter-butts, Moscow, 1/25/11

I noticed in the past couple of days that a pair of Canada Geese has staked out their high perch on top of one of the silos in town. This happens every spring and although I've never monitored them (perhaps I will this year) I presume they are nesting here (presumably successfully or a pair wouldn't show back up every year). Sometimes there is squabbling at the site which I presume is from competing pairs or individuals so it must be a highly prized site.

Also walking in to campus I had 3 Yellow-rumped Warblers (aka butter-butts) at their traditional Greek row wintering site - today near the Delta Gamma sorority house.

--
Charles Swift
Moscow, Idaho
(north-central Idaho, 80 miles SE of Spokane, WA)
46°43′54″ N, 116°59′50″ W
email: chaetura@gmail.com
skype: charles.swift
google voice: 208-991-2473

Moscow area, 1/22/11 - Geese, owls, and Rough-legged Hawks

Hi All - 

I got out around Moscow for a few hours yesterday. At Darby and Mountainview Rds. I had 1 or 2 Cackling Geese (B.h.minima) with ~800 Canada Geese and ~200 Mallards (see attached). Several other small geese present were probably Lesser Canada Geese (B.c.parvipes) but I didn't get conclusive looks. 

At Doug Rudolph's place on Estes Rd. just into Whitman Co. I had a Long-eared Owl and a pair of Great Horned Owls. The Long-eared Owl did the typical thing of flushing and flying around behind me every time I got close to it. I talked to Doug when I arrived and he said it was fine to wander around and look for birds. He used to feed birds and occasionally had Gray-crowned Finches at his feeders. I believe a number of owls were found here last winter. 

I also had 3 Rough-legged Hawks while wandering around which seems normal for the area covered. As mentioned a while ago Rough-legged Hawks roost communally on Moscow Mountain. Some long-time area birders like Dave Holick probably know how long it's been there but I bet it's been many years. At the right time and place it's possible to see Rough-legs leaving or returning to the roost. Some of these communal roosts get quite large, for example the Ronan, Montana roost in the Mission Valley has had over 300 some years but more usually ~200 and some years much less (see: http://iba.audubon.org/iba/profileReport.do?siteId=2977). The natural variability in these roost counts suggests that numbers of wintering Rough-legged Hawks can vary from year to year and place to place.

thanks, Charles.

-- 
Charles Swift
Moscow, Idaho
(north-central Idaho, 80 miles SE of Spokane, WA)
46°43′54″ N, 116°59′50″ W
email: chaetura@gmail.com
skype: charles.swift
google voice: 208-991-2473

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